(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a server, a user terminal, an information providing service system and an information providing service method suitable, for example, for use in a positional information service using portable terminals.
(2) Description of the Related Art
In general, for preservation of electronic data, a user (enterprise, individual) uses a processing device such as a keyboard or a mouse. For signifying his/her intention, the user conducts conversion into another hardware and gives an instruction to the processing device for retrieving or preserving data to the contents to be processed.
Furthermore, in the recent years, the widespread use of portable terminals has prepared mobile environments, which has popularized small-sized GPS (Global Positioning System) modules whereby a position of human beings is measurable, thus providing a variety of services, with a portion thereof being used as a navigation (road guide) service which measures and shows a place a user stands.
However, when retrieving or preserving data, the user is required to once convert user's intention into data in a different format, and in this case, there is a need to process the data in digital form; therefore, the user cannot conduct direct processing, such as placing something appearing in his/her sight on a shelf. That is, a problem exists in that the user cannot make a retrieval, so to speak, with an analog sensation, such as “go toward the north”, “relatively right/left” and “somewhat right/forward/backward”. This is not familiar with human sensation, thus resulting in a hard-to-use manner.
Accordingly, in data retrieval and preservation, although the manipulation according to an analog sensation is more convenient, the user is forced to conduct the processing in a digital manner, and this digital processing requires special knowledge and experience.
In addition, service for portable terminals mainly involve voice service, and a display thereof is small in size and is not suitable for indication of a position the user exists.
Still additionally, in a navigation service using voice, the user identifies a position by employing a GPS module built in or attached externally to the portable terminal. Thus, in the navigation service, the system side can offer a navigation in the absolute expression such as “go toward the north”.
On the other hand, difficulty is encountered in seizing the direction the user faces; hence, the system side cannot show a navigation such as “go straight” in a relative expression taking a user's situation into consideration. For this reason, according to this service, a navigation becomes hard in a case in which difficulty exists in identification of “east”, “west”, “south” and “north”.
Moreover, in a case in which an object, for example, a motor vehicle, travels at a high speed, owing to the Doppler effect occurring between a GPS satellite and a portable terminal, it is possible to seize the user's traveling direction. However, there is a problem in that, when the moving speed is low like walking, or while the user is in a stopping condition, difficulty is experienced in seizing the user or vehicle traveling direction.
Meanwhile, in fact, there are very few of system providers (system operating people or firms) who can invest in high-priced facilities for seizing user' motion.